


Anti-Ex

by sippingpoison



Category: The Mindy Project
Genre: Angst, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-04
Updated: 2014-12-08
Packaged: 2018-02-28 02:42:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2715941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sippingpoison/pseuds/sippingpoison
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You are not her. I love you for you.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. That's All You've Got?

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic ever! Be gentle :)
> 
> I'm truly inspired by so many other TMP writers. I read all your stuff. You are all amazing. I know there are parts I should have lengthened for to make it even angstier, but I'm exhausted and I needed to get this out.
> 
> There will be more if I'm not too distraught and embarrassed by my comments lol

"You are not Christina."

This is the first thing Mindy hears as she drags herself back into Danny's apartment after going to see Peter in the hospital. She knows she shouldn't be there. Deep inside she knows she should sleep at her own apartment tonight, but what kind of person would she be to run away when she scolds Danny for it every time?

The words stick to her like the ring she leaves after drinking her sugar filled morning tea that Danny yells at her for every day - coaster this, coaster that. He's such an old man! Yet she still manages to say:

"What?" 

She heard him, but she's tired. She wants him to do the work.

"You are not Christina."

She barely has her fingers off the doorknob. She drops her bag and closes the door, leaving it unlocked. Danny walks over slowly, but subconsciously, and locks the door behind her. They have no choice to now be standing face to face.

After a few deep breaths, "Say something, Min."

She stares at Danny for what he feels is eternity.

"I know that. I'm much younger and much hotter than she is, even with her perfect cheekbones...that devil."

"Now who's not being serious! Do you want to talk about her cheekbones or about us?"

As soon as he says it, he notices Mindy's right nostril start doing that thing it does when she is irritated but not angry, when she wants him to apologize on his own without her telling him that she's hurt.

"I shouldn't have said that."

"No you shouldn't have! I should've stayed at the hospital with Peter like he asked. He damn near got killed tonight because I evicted him thinking my boyfriend was ready to have me move in with him... I didn't come here to fight..."

"Min! You're not listening. I said you weren't Christina."

"Danny, you can't just keep repeating the same thing and expect me to know what you mean!"

Most of their relationship is easy. They know each other's beats. They can expect what the other wants. Knowing each other for over 6 years does that. Mindy knows when Danny needs his space, but she also knows that sometimes he needs silence and not distance, so she sits with her head on his lap while he rubs her scalp as if she's the one who needs to massage out her thoughts. Danny knows that sometimes Mindy is bratty because she wants a little attention. Instead of calling her out, he sends flowers and desert (of course desert) to her office. He tried sending edible arrangements once; she was bratty for the next week.

What they're not good at is everything else. The talking. They avoid the real talking. They try. They fail. They have sex, great sex, and they usually forget their fight. But this, this is much deeper.

"Min...I...sometimes I think you can read my mind. Sometimes you do. You know when I need you. You're always there... I just.. I want you to know that I'm finally figuring it out. You're not her, okay? I keep expecting the other shoe to drop. I've waited 7 years for you to end up leaving me. Even at your worst, you are not her. You are not him."

Mindy contemplates what he's saying. Somehow they've made their way to the couch. She reaches over and touches the back of his neck. Instantly, it sends shivers down his spine. He grabs her face and leans over to kiss her forehead. He kisses her jawline and touches his nose with hers. With eyes shut she whispers, "I love you... I love you...but that's not enough."

His eyes jerk open and he grabs her hand as she starts to get up. "Mindy.... Mindy. I don't understand what else you want me to say. I just gave you my all."

"Daniel Castellano! That is your all? I've seen you say more about way less! That's why you hang on to me... to us? Because I am not the people who hurt you? That's all you've got!?" The tears start to fall.

He can't stand to see her in pain, but for the first time in forever he doesn't get what she's getting at. "You know I didn't mean it that way. Mindy, I'm trying here!"

"I have to go see Peter."

She reaches by the door to grab her purse. As she goes to open it, he shouts, "I read your stupid diary, Min." 


	2. Flashback

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When did you know?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe people kinda actually maybe enjoyed my last post.
> 
> Thank you!

She hasn't said it yet, and she knows that it's weighing heavy on him. The gleam in his eye is still there, but the backdrop is also a little darker. It's not that she doesn't feel it. She feels it every single time she walks into his apartment and he smiles that goofy smile that she's only ever seen him give his Ma. She feels it every time he yells "Min!" when she leaves wet towels on the floor and hair in the drain. He lights up her soul, and she can't quite put her finger on when he started being the spark that ignites her flame. Yet, she still hasn't said it.

He doesn't pressure her, but it confuses her that he's the one to say it first and so often. It surprises her that he doesn't push. She wouldn't say he was patient, but he definitely is understanding. Understanding about what? She doesn't know because she's still unsure of why it's taking her so long...

"Min... If you're not going to watch your Real Housewives of Something or Other, why'd you make me put it on? There's a perfectly good documentary on about the history of stamps that would probably blow your mind!" There's that smile again.

"Huh.. Yeah. Change it if you want," Mindy replies, only half hearing what he just said.

"Okay. Spill it. What's wrong?"

When she doesn't reply instantly, he softens his tone. With one hand under her chin and the other brushing strands of hair falling loose from her ponytail out of her face, he whispers, "Babe, you're never this quiet during trashy reality tv marathons. What's the matter?"

A few moments go by as she contemplates the words that she's been waiting to say for months now. She doesn't break eye contact and bites her lip gently: "When did you know?"

For some reason, he doesn't have to ask her what she's referring to. He knows exactly what she means, and it makes his stomach turn.

"Min... Please... Don't. I don't know." He drops his hands into his lap and starts wiping the sweat from his palms, and she swears that right at the moment she starts to notice that his forehead is a little shinier than it was just moments ago. "Let's just go to bed baby. C'mon..."

"Danny...please." Her eyes are starting to well up, and he knows that if he doesn't give in tonight she'll have trouble sleeping. Then he'll end up having the conversation anyway at 2:00am instead of 8:30, and that'll just defeat the purpose of his nighttime rituals.

"Fine. I...I guess I always did." She knows he's uncomfortable, so she's gentle and let's him answer without probing like she normally would. "I mean... I didn't know that I knew, but now that I think back on it, I guess it was always there."

Most of the time, Daniel Castellano will give you feelings or proximity but never both, so she's shocked when he reaches out for her hand as he's talking. "Mindy, I love you. You know that. Isn't that enough?"

She uncurls herself from her position on the couch and contemplates the words that he's saying as she sits on her knees as close to him as possible. With her hand still in his, she squeezes a little while leaning over to kiss his cheekbone. As he looks up, she says in her softest voice, "If I'm going to find the courage to say it back Danny, I need to know when you fell in love with me."


	3. Before

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And she thought it was great the first time...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *blush* sorry to be such a tease lol

They waited over 6 years for their first time. They waited through exes and messes and insecurities and taking it slow. They waited through hands on the small of her back, turbulence, small airplane bathrooms and fake dating. Needless to say, once they found their rhythm, their first time was everything she thought it would be. Who knew it would only get better from there?  
________________________________________

Danny is sitting on his side of the bed reading when he hears Mindy knocking on the door. He doesn't understand why she just doesn't use the key she's had for years, but, if he knows Mindy at all, she's probably lost it in that Mary Poppins purse of hers. For some reason that makes his heart beat a little faster.

He crosses to the other side of his apartment to let her in. He opens the door and smiles. Just as he suspected; she's fishing for her keys as she looks up at him. "Ughhh babe. I know how much you hate getting up after you're already in bed, but I can't find my keys anywhere. I don't think I left them at work. I was too excited to come see my handsome boyfriend. I remember dropping them in here after you forced me to lock up this morning. They must be buried under the packets of condim--"

She doesn't get to finish what she's saying before he has his lips on her, and he's kissing her hard. The feeling is vaguely familiar. They've been so busy lately that they haven't had the time to really explore their newfound passion. With her hands still in her purse, Mindy sinks into the kiss as Danny grabs her waist pulling her closer to him but never close enough. His lips are warm and soft. She can taste the hint of his stupid guest bathroom ale. On any other day she would probably complain, but today she actually doesn't mind.

The ding of the elevator reminds them where they are right as the kiss starts to deepen. He looks up at her with those intense Italian eyes and says, "I've got something for you, Lahiri. Let's go inside."

"Danny. You know I was going to say condiments, right? I lost my keys under the packets of condiments in my purse. You're such a perv. You can't start counting sex as my daily presents."

He moves her into the apartment so he can lock the door. "Shhhh. What? No!" He grabs her purse to put down on the counter before he kisses her forehead. "I'm not stupid. I got you an actual present!"

"What did I do to deserve you? You're a good man Castellano! Now gimme so we can get you laid!" She all but tried to push him out of the way so she could run to the bedroom. 

He grabs her wrists and laughs that good, deep laugh she wants to think he only has reserved for her as he takes off her coat. "Slow down. I've missed you." He knows that teasing an impatient Mindy is shaky territory, but he also knows she'll forgive him. Mindy doesn't say a word as he takes a second to look at her in those blue scrubs he loves so much before he leads her into his bedroom. There's nothing better than her boyfriend in charge, so Mindy lets herself follow his lead. On the nightstand, on her side of the bed, is a picture frame with a red bow on it. Mindy skips over to the frame, "Danny! Did you steal my autographed picture of Kris Jenner to have it reframed? You're the best!"

As she finally lifts her present off the nightstand, he says, "No. I think this might beat that."

"She's a mogul Castellano! What could beat - a receipt? I don't get it..."

"Min... Look at the date." He leans against the doorframe as he waits for her to figure it out.

As soon as she sees it, she knows. Her eyes start to water as she looks up at him. "You kept it...the receipt to the worst pizza in NYC. You kept it." 

"I kept it." He finally makes his way over to her. Before she has a chance to say anything he interrupts her thoughts: "I know you're still worried about us. Last night on the fire escape it broke my heart to know you still didn't think I was all in. I love you, Min."

She's full on crying now, and if he didn't know her well he would think she hated the gift. "I know you're not ready to say it back, but that won't stop me from telling you everyday that this is real...and I love you."

"Shut up Castellano."

"Min, are you mad? I can get you something else. I know that you think homemade gifts are the poor man's work..."

"I really need you to be quiet." He obliges but doesn't understand. All she does is stare. She stares at the frame through her tears. She stares at his lips still swollen from their kiss, then his hands before finally looking into his eyes. All the while, Danny is trying to read her and figure her out. A few minutes pass, but he doesn't dare look away. He tunes in to what her eyes may be trying to tell him, but it's hard to tell behind her soft crying. Just then she licks her lips, and all the blood rushes to the lower half of his body. He realizes what she wants just as she says:

"I need you to show me how much you love me Danny. I want to feel it. I need to feel it."

He could feel his heartbeat in his penis. They've had sex dozens of times in the past couple weeks, but Danny realizes this is the first time he will make love to his girlfriend.

He leans over and whispers, "For you, I'll do anything," and just like that she's on him. Her hands have found the space behind his head where that thick hair of his meets his neck, and she grabs at him ferociously as his lips land on hers. She knows he's going to end up doing most of the work tonight because Daniel Castellano never met a challenge that he didn't take on, but she'll take the lead for as long as he lets her.

She kicks off her shoes so that she can straddle him on the bed. He's sitting on the edge, so he plants his feet into the floor to keep steady. Everything seems to be moving in slow motion. Their mouths are still searching for what there are not enough words to say, and, when her pelvis meets his, he hums into her mouth. "What do you want babe? Tell me what you want." She can barely hear his words, and she's not sure if she just imagined them or if he actually did speak. The squeeze on her ass brings her back to reality. She pushes the tip of her tongue into his mouth as he tries to push them even closer together. Now it's her that's doing the humming. At some point, she has started grinding against him like her life depends on it causing Danny to be straining against his boxer shorts. He knew that if they kept this up, it would be over before they even started, so he stops the kiss. She groans at the lost of contact, but it's not missing for long. 

He helps her remove her top. Before it even falls on the floor, he reaches behind her to grab a handful of her hair pulling her head back. She gasps as he starts leaving a trail of kisses along the tops her breasts and collar bone. 

"Danny...baby..." He moves his tongue into the top of her bra as he pulls a little tighter on her hair. Growing impatient, Mindy reaches behind her to unsnap her bra, and instantly Danny has his tongue around her left nipple. Her body is still sore from yesterday, so it takes everything in her not to cringe after he removes his mouth and the air hits her breast. He moves his mouth to the right one, which is his favorite. Mindy always complains that this one always gets more attention. This time he bites down, and she moans more loudly than she intends to.

"Dammit Danny... Please." He laughs breathily as he licks from her cleavage up to her right earlobe and bites down.

"You still haven't told me what you want, baby. I love you, but I'll make you beg if I have to." His words, in that tone, make her so wet that it's becoming uncomfortable, and she knows she has to give in.

"Ughhh I need you... I need you to show me you love me... Make me cum. Make love to me, and make me cum."

Just like that he has her flipped onto the mattress. With one swift motion, he pulls her scrub pants down with her panties. He returns to lay his body in the space in between her legs and nudges her nose. Sometimes he can't believe that he has this woman - his woman - in his bed. He gets that feeling again as she smiles through her tears. Danny kisses her gently all over her face as she pants trying to catch her breath. He searches her face for a sign that she's ready for more. She bites her lip and nods yes. He shifts his body to the right side of her as he returns his lips to hers. She throws her arms around his neck and spreads her legs knowing what his first move will be based on how's hes laying next to her. With one hand in her hair, he slips his other down between her legs. He finds her center and slowly dips one finger in.


	4. I'm Giving You My All

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fight (Part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all your feedback so far, and all of your reposts on Tumblr!
> 
> This is the first time I'm writing, but I've been reading all your work for so long. I'm such a fan, and I've been stacking up ideas in my head for months (which is why the chapters are so frequent).
> 
> Please continue to leave me feedback. I really appreciate it :)

It's like her brain shuts off so that she doesn't hear what he just said. If she faces it, this will be the biggest fight they have ever had. For the first time, Mindy thinks of leaving in the middle of an argument so that she can pretend for the night that everything is okay. Yet, her feet don't move. Her breath starts becoming uneven. She slowly turns around, but doesn't move away from the door: "You did what?"

Fuck. He hadn't meant to say it out loud. Now, there was no way to avoid this fight. It was like the words struggled to make their way out of his vocal chords, all the while suffocating him. He looked around for something to cling to and steady him. Usually that thing - that person - was Mindy, but there's no way she was going to want him invading her space now.

He sits back down on the couch avoiding her eye contact as she starts to face him: "I... The day you left me in here alone, I was looking for something to do... I hadn't meant to..."

She was yelling. Since he had met her, she only ever used this tone when someone didn't get her food order correct. The only difference was that the hurt in her eyes seemed to go back layers. She surpassed dramatic and went straight to furious: "No Danny! You hadn't meant to would be you reading the first page, realizing what it was and putting it back! I can't believe you!"

"You would've done the same thing! I didn't think it would be that big of a deal!"

"That's the excuse you wanna go with Castellano? Of course I would've done the same thing, and think of the speech you would've given me about this being a huge breech of your privacy. I wouldn't ever hear the end of it." She still didn't move.

Danny didn't know what to say. He knew his argument was weak, and she was right. Maybe if he could just get her to come sit down and look at him, he could make everything better...

"Wait... I don't even get what reading my diary has to do with..." As soon as she saw the look in his eye, she knew.

"Oh." Slowly, she dropped her purse, took off her shoes and made her way to the couch. She was careful not to sit too close to him. Mindy knew that if he got his hands on her, the fight would be over instantly and nothing would be solved. 

"Danny, I need us to have this fight my way."

He looked up at her genuinely confused: "What the hell does that mean?"

"I need you to promise not to come any closer to me until we're done fighting. I know that if I let you, all of this will melt away."

"Okay... Wait what's wrong with that? You WANT to fight?" The sound in his voice is almost desperate. 

"Danny..." She tucks her feet under her thighs and begins to reach over to him as she realizes that not touching her boyfriend is actually really hard, even if she's the one who suggested it. Her hands fall back into her lap. "Danny, all that's going to happen is that if we don't get this one out of our system correctly, the same issues are going to be there in the morning."

Danny knew she was right. If he really thought about it, they've been having this fight for over a week. It wasn't something that they could brush under the rug, like Mindy tried to do with any of the crumbs she spilled while eating so that she didn't have to clean up after dinner.

"Okay."

"Okay."

They stared at each other for awhile. No one wanted to break the silence because they knew once they did, they would have to hit the ground running. Danny noticed Mindy's right nostril flare, and he knew that this was her body's invitation for him to speak first (he wonder if she knew that her nose did that).

"Min... Mindy. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have read your diary. It's private, and it was none of my business."

She knows that he genuinely means that. She had already forgiven him ten minutes ago because he was right - she would've done the same thing. Mindy says, "You and I both know that this isn't the main issue... You're freaking out because I want to marry you."

"What!? No! Well yes... But..."

"Spit it out, Castellano."

Danny wipes his face with his palms hoping that it would help calm his nerves. When that doesn't work, he gets up and walks over to the kitchen. Mindy knows exactly what he's going to do because even in the mist of a fight, he's still an absolute gentleman. He grabs the tea kettle, fills it with water, and puts it on the stove. After setting the stove, Danny takes out two mugs (the His and Hers ones that Mindy got engraved) from the cabinets. She doesn't dare speak while he's gathering his thoughts. She knows that if she does, it'll take him another few weeks to gain the courage to say what he's about to say next. Danny grabs two tea bags and drops one in each mug. He steadies himself with the edge of the island, but avoids her eye contact.

"Min... I'm not freaking out because you want to get married so much as I'm freaking out that you'll leave me if it's not done when you want it to be done."

For some reason this irritates Mindy. His words scratch her skin and she feels the heat starting from her eardrums out. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?

Danny starts to walk over to her but realizes that he's playing by her rules, even though he's on his home turf, and thinks better of it. He all but whispers, "It means... I don't get... Why is it that you get to make all the rules about how this is supposed to work!?"

Even as he's saying it, he doesn't realize that he's not just talking about how they're fighting. He realizes how much she dictates what their relationship is supposed to be like. He doesn't mind it usually, except when she pushes him too far. He is a better person because of her. He could never take that away from her. Actually, he tries to remind her every chance he gets. But the ultimatums, the timelines, the push sometimes gets too much. He wishes that everything didn't have to be so accelerated all of the time. After all, their relationship should be a marathon, not a sprint.

She laughs, but doesn't mean to. The laugh gets sucked back in and the air around them is left with a weird, almost whimpering sound. She doesn't miss a beat to exclaim, "Because Danny...you got your say when you decided to leave me!"

The tea kettle goes off.


	5. Since When

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Continuation of Flashback.
> 
> When did Danny fall in love?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't thank you enough for your support!

He's never had to have this level of conversation with any of the girls he's ever been with, not even Christina. I guess that says a lot about his relationship with Mindy. No one has ever forced him to talk about his feelings before, and those that have were content with the little he gave. Mindy was different. She tried not to probe about the stuff she knew was too hard, like talking about his dad. (Yet, if he was being honest, he gave her more information than she ever asked for since she was there the first time he confronted Alan). However, Danny couldn't get by trying to express his love for this woman with anything less than theatrics, and he did that for her because she was it for him.

Mindy spoke up, breaking him away from his inner monologue: "Hello...anybody there?" She knocked lightly against his forehead.

He smiled and lifted her into his lap as she giggled and pretended to be offended. Gosh, that sound. He could never grow tired of that laugh. With his nose buried in her hair and his arms around her waist, he whispered, "I don't want you to say anything you're not ready to say. I will still love you the same even if you never say it back... But I'll tell you if you really want to know."

Mindy bit her bottom lip and nodded for him to keep going as she searched for an answer in his eyes. He kissed her on the cheek and took a deep breath. The breath turned into a laugh. He couldn't believe he was about to admit this.

"I never thought I would have a chance with you. You were always unavailable, and you always went after the guys who were so different from me. I thought...if that's your type, then I have no chance..."

She didn't dare speak, but she wrapped her arms around his neck to encourage him to continue.

"I didn't really know that I wanted a chance... Until sitting outside on that fire escape with you when you were about to get married..."

She smacked him in the chest, but he's not that surprised. He learned quickly that dating Mindy meant being okay with her physical reaction to all of her emotions. "What!? You were in love with me way back then and you would have let me marry another man!?"

Danny grabbed her hands off his chest and kissed them in order to relax her (and it worked). "No. I didn't know I was in love yet, but I knew that I wanted to see you happy even if that meant being happy with someone else. You're my best friend. I would give anything to make sure you're happy Min."

With those words, she settled into his chest a little deeper. There she could hear his pulse racing and knew this was really difficult for him. "I knew you had unlamplike feelings for me!"

"I wish I knew... But it makes sense. I did need a very cold shower after your breast exam..."

"Danny!" There was another smack.

He smiled smugly: "...and after trying to train you at the gym..."

"Oh my god."

"...and the morning you woke up in my apartment after we were pretending we were a couple..."

"You did that while I was in here Danny...Actually, that's kind of hot!" 

"...and that morning, making you breakfast, that was the first time I realized I was in love with you."

It took a second to register what he said because she was still imagining Danny pleasuring himself to thoughts of her as she was asleep in his bed. She made a mental note to bring that back up later.

"You knew you were in love with me then?" Her eyes began to well up, and although Danny hated to see her cry, it never got old seeing her get so emotional over their relationship.

"Mindy Lahiri, I knew I loved you since the first time I held you in my arms. I didn't know what to do with those feelings, but I knew that my life would change from that point forward... And I am so glad that it did. Having you in my house, making you breakfast, playing house... It finally clicked for me. I'm so happy we can do it now for real." Without warning, his hands find her face and his lips are on hers before she has a chance to react. Kissing Danny was always a surprise, no matter how many times she got to do it in a day. His lips were always warmer than she expected, and oh the things that man could do with his tongue. Just as his hands finds the small of her back (which secretly is her favorite place for them to be), her pager goes off.

He sighs into her mouth. "Do you have to go?" He sneaks another peck or two before she tries to get herself decent enough to get ready for rounds.

"I wish I could stay, babe. I'll try not to be gone too long. Try not to do anything dirty until I get back."

"Ughhhh. I already regret telling you that." He's not the least bit upset though. "I love you. I'll see you when you get home."

She flashes him a quick smile and walks out of the door. As soon as she is on the other side, he goes into his bedroom and finishes the final touches on the gift he planned to give her in a few days. He hopes he picked the right frame. 


End file.
